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NEW YORK — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a Pfizer vaccine for Streptococcus pneumoniae in adults ages 50 years and older, the company said.

Pfizer announced the FDA approval of Prevnar 13 (pneumococcal 13-valent conjugate vaccine [diphtheria CRM197 protein]) as a single-dose for adults.

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Drug maker Amgen will discuss the supplemental biologics license application of Xgeva before a Food and Drug Administration review panel next month.

SUPPLIER NEWS — Pharmacy technology provider PDX is partnering with Mscripts to allow existing PDX Classic and Enterprise Pharmacy System customers to add mobile to their customer-facing offerings, the companies said. The features will give pharmacies an outreach channel to improve their bin management and will-call services, as well as allow them to easily identify aging prescriptions and use the Mscripts mobile application to remind customers to pick up their prescriptions.


FOSTER CITY, Calif. — The Food and Drug Administration has accepted a regulatory approval application from Gilead Sciences for a drug to treat HIV, the company said.

Gilead said the FDA planned to review the application for the Quad by Aug. 27.

The Quad combines four Gilead drugs — Truvada (emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate), cobicistat and elvitegravir — into one pill. The last drug was licensed from Japan Tobacco.

JERUSALEM — Teva Pharmaceutical Industries announced that Shlomo Yanai, president and CEO, will retire from his post in May.

Yanai, who has served in this capacity for five years, has helped Teva expand from a mainly generics business to a more diversified pharmaceutical company, with expected 2012 revenue of approximately $22 billion, and an expanded footprint in the European, Asian and Latin America markets.

While physicians and pharmacists alike generally view electronic prescribing with favor, several barriers stand in the way of their realizing its full benefit, according to a November government study.


SAN FRANCISCO — Drug maker Bristol-Myers Squibb and the Gladstone Institutes will collaborate to find new ways to treat Alzheimer's disease, the two said Thursday.

NEW YORK — Baxter and Momenta have agreed to partner to develop and market biosimilar  drugs to treat cancer, autoimmune disorders and other chronic conditions.